The Value of Life
by Serona
Summary: This story is my version of what will happen. It picks up directly after the end of Season 1 Episode 22 "Founder's Day". DS/EG
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

**A/N:** Hey guys, this is my first FanFiction story so I would love any kind of (constructive) feedback. I decided to write this just after I watched the final episode of Season 1.

This starts of right after the end of Season 1 Episode 22 = "Founder's Day"

**Disclaimer**: Anything you recognise isn't mine.

* * *

Damon ran. It had been his first instinct and, as soon as he could act on it, he did. He ran.

___Katherine!_ His mind screamed at him. _Katherine Fucking Pierce!_

_He brushed a light kiss against her cheek, breathing deeply to steady his nerves. He could smell her scent, so unique, so Elena, but something was off. It was as if the smell was on her but not a part of her. He paused slightly, his gaze locking with hers. That's when, deep down, he knew. It took sometime for the thought to form in his mind but as his eyes flickered to her lips, he began to lean in. Part of him was praying to be slapped, to be rejected, proven to be insane. His actions as of late, certainly made him feel like it. Nothing happened. His lips brushed against hers. He noticed a faint cringe on her behalf but she pulled him closer anyway, deepening the kiss. Even then there was hope in him. Hope that it really was Elena..._

_Elena!_

He skidded to a stop. He did 180 degree turn and ran straight back the way he had just come. If Katherine found her, death would be the preferred option.

_He heard the click of the door and Jenna's scent filtered out onto the porch. Katherine had cringed, awkwardly pushing him away, hiding his face just the way she always used to. He was in shock, dumbfounded, sad..._

_Katherine stepped into the house and he stood there momentarily dazed – until the realization kicked in. Then he ran to get Stefan._

And now he was running back. Back to his maker. To his lover – ex-lover!

He approached the house and instantly smelled the scent of blood. He bolted through the door, nearly knocking it off its hinges. Elena whipped around, about to approach the source of the previous noise. She saw a wild-eyed Damon, his face half morphed, running towards her. She barely had time to scream before his hand was over her mouth, cutting her off. She was unable to register the split second it took to be deposited in his arms and out the door.

As his hand was still firmly clasped over her mouth, she, rejecting the need to yell, struggled to get free instead.

"Will you stop that," he growled at her, releasing her mouth as he ran.

"Stop Damon! Stop! What is going–"

He stopped, placing her on the forest ground. "Katherine," he said, thinking it would explain everything, "She's here, Elena."

Elena staggered slightly, suddenly finding herself on her own two feet again. She barely noticed it as a pang of fear hit her. _Jeremy! Jenna!_

She began to move but he caught her arm. "Damon! You need to take me back," she begged, clenching her hands, "Jeremy and Jenna are home!"

Damon felt sick at the fear in her voice and the memory of blood. He had smelled blood at her house – lot's of it.

"Give me your phone," he said, remaining calm, while holding out his hand for it.

She was thrown by the sudden change in conversation but quickly felt around for it. "I don't . . . I don't have it. It's in my bag, Damon! Please take me back!" She started moving again, and again he stopped her.

"For what, Elena?" he snapped at her. He was frustrated. "You can't help them. As much as it pains me to say this, we need Stefan."

He didn't bother to wait for a reply before picking her up then, running towards the old boarding house.

"Elena, listen," he said, while he ran. He hoped she was listening. Elena had gone somewhat catatonic. The realization that she could do nothing had hit her – hard. With her focus questionable, he shook her a little as he ran.

"Elena, are you listening?"

"What Damon?" she replied, sounding more tiered than irritated.

"The old boarding house, okay? Listen. I hereby officially entrust it to you. Conciser it as an inheritance, a gift, whatever. It's yours."

"What are you talking about?" she asked, perplexed now.

"I'm creating a safe place," he replied, answering her question unsatisfactorily. Coming to a stop in front of the residence, he placed her down. "Stefan!" he yelled. He turned to her, putting his hands on her arms and looking into her eyes. "You'll be safe here," he reassured, "Katherine can't enter unless you invite her into _your _home. Hence, the boarding house is _yours_."

Stefan had appeared by Elena's site almost instantly.

"Katherine?" he asked, overhearing Damon's words. Elena sagged against Stefan as Damon released her, explaining the situation. Stefan enveloped her in a protective hug, pulling her close. He saw the tears that began to run down Elena's cheeks and she sobbed. "She's got them Stefan. Katherine has Jeremy. She has Jenna."

In the time it took Elena to get out these sobs, Damon entered and left the boarding house. His plan hadn't worked. He turned her away from his brother and looked at her pointedly.

"Elena, will you _live _with us at this _boarding house_, calling it your _home_?" He stretched the importance of the words, hoping she would catch on. Trying to give them meaning.

She looked up into his eyes and he suddenly wondered how he could ever have though Katherine's eyes were similar. The depth and raw feeling he saw in these eyes almost threatened to drown him. At this moment, one emotion dominated all others – trust. She nodded at him, understanding, and replied, "I would be honoured to call this place my home."

"Then it is yours," he stated plainly, sweeping his arm over the house in a grand gesture. Then he rushed to the door in an attempt to enter, sweeping her up as he went. Stefan glared at the back of his head as he came to a screeching halt before the door. The all too familiar barrier was up and he smiled.

"Care to invite me in?"

"Please come inside Damon," she said, still firmly clasped in his arms.

He placed her down inside. "Stay here," he instructed, rushing towards Stefan.

"But J–"

"We will take care of it Elena!" Stefan interrupted her, understanding what his brother had done, "And please let me in."

She mumbled something to that effect but stepped outside, protesting his first proposal.

"That's my family Stefan!" she yelled, "And they are– Oh god." She looked horrified for a moment. "I've wasted so much time. We have to go! Now! God knows what she could have done to them."

~0~0~0~

Jeremy could feel the last seconds of his life tick, tick, tick . . . away . . .

He shot up in bed. His head was pounding, his throat dry. He breathed in, hoping to be refreshed by the night air, streaming in through his bedroom window. A scent reached his over-sensitive sense of smell and he felt an itch in his muscles, a throbbing in his teeth.

He was out of bed in a flash.

He moved quickly down the stairs, taking them two at a time. He was in the hallway before he caught himself, yet he followed the scent to it's source – the kitchen. The scene before him, saw his uncle slit open, his hand mutilated and blood smeared all over the kitchen floor. As his eyes fell on his uncle, the first thing he felt was pain. It was, however emotional – short lived. The second thing he felt was hunger.

Blood.

He could feel his own body singing with anticipation as he moved towards it. There was a part of his brain that knew . . . knew that something was happening . . . something he may want to conciser but . . . Hunger. He brushed his hand over the wound, watching the blood ooze over his fingers and he sighed. He brought his fingers to his lips, sucking them greedily. Suddenly the throbbing in his teeth became excruciating. After that, a blind haze took over and he dug his new-found fangs into his uncles neck.

_

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**A/N:** So? What did you think? Good? Bad? Please let me know what you think. *nudge, nudge* Review? *nudge, nudge* :)


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

**A/N:** I realize that the council members may have noticed Damon being thrown in with the Vampires but I've decided that they haven't.

* * *

"Jer. Jer. Come on." He could feel the hand on his shoulder and finally turned away from the drained body. His gaze fell on Elena. He tried to yank away from her but her grip was surprisingly strong.

"Come on Jer. Jenna can't see you like this," she implored pulling him up, off the ground. He finally realized how he must look, covered in his dead uncles blood. He chuckled and then instantly whirled his head in the direction of a creaking noise coming from the hall way. Jenna was coming down the stairs. "Jeremy? Elena?" she called, "What is all this noise?"

He was torn. A part of him wanted to rip her throat out, another was disgusted at himself and yet another . . . followed Elena. She was urging him out the back, pulling him into a run. As his feet hit the ground, the fog, which seemed to have settled in his mind, disappeared. He could feel his muscles pumping, his speed incredible, the night air whipping past his face. He looked back and saw Elena keeping pace just behind him. Seeing his expression, Katherine giggled.

~0~0~0~

In the end, she hadn't needed to convince Stefan. Damon had picked her up, again, and run towards the Gilbert house. Stefan followed, hot on his tail.

"Thank you," she whispered, grateful that he understood her need to be there.

"Don't thank me yet," he replied as they neared their destination.

Stefan was furious but momentarily distracted by the smell coming from the house. Blood.

"Plan of action?" he asked.

"Wing it," Damon replied. He set down Elena and crossed the short distance between them and the front door. Just as he reached out his hand, a piercing scream rang through the night.

"Jenna!" Elena screamed in return, beginning to run forward. Stefan held her back as Damon opened the door, producing a stake from under his jacket. He entered, with the others following close behind.

"Don't come in here!" Damon called and Stefan immediately restricted Elena from entering the kitchen. His brother sounded alarmed. Never a good sign.

"Let me go!" Elena shouted, unable to free herself. "Jer! Jenna!" She was in tears.

"It's not them!" Damon shouted back, hoping to ease her worry a little. He moved forward, ignoring the bloody mess that had once been Jonathan Gilbert. He found Jenna pressed into a corner, crying hysterically. She flinched and then clung to him, recognising who he was.

"Look at me," he instructed her calmly and when she finally did, he used his compulsion to quieten her down.

He did a quick run through the house, passing a passive Stefan and a distraught Elena. "Katherine's gone," he declared, ignoring the twinge he felt when looking at Elena. That was the good news he had. However, he was certain that Jeremy was gone too.

"Don't let her into the kitchen," he instructed Stefan again. She sent him a death glare, struggling against Stefan's hold.

"Let me go!" she shouted, feeling betrayed.

He swooped down, garbing her face. "Elena, believe me, you don't want to see this. Jenna is alive, Jeremy is not here–" he clasped a hand over her mouth when she made a noise, "But Jonathan is dead."

Elena went limp in Stefan's arms.

He used the time in which Elena was passed out, to compulse Jenna to got to the bathroom, wash of the blood she was covered in, and get changed. "Return once your done," he told her as an afterthought. He checked his bases, listening out for anything other than Stefan moving Elena into the living room and Jenna in the bathroom. There was nothing and he quickly picked up the phone, calling the sheriff.

By the time the council members had arrived, all necessary preparations had been made. Jenna was dressed in sweatpants and a shirt, a blanket wrapped securely around her shaking form. Damon had tweaked her memory. The story was that she came home, found the body and broke down in a hysteric mess. She never saw Jeremy or Katherine or him. For all she knew, Elena was with him and Stefan, scheduled to come over for a movie night. When they came, he found her in that state and prevented Elena from seeing the body. They had immediately called the sheriff. It was close enough to the truth to check out and their statements on the events had already been taken.

He shuddered, looking over at a catatonic Elena on the couch, Stefan right beside her.

Stefan was cooing nonsense at Elena, a practice Damon absolutely despised. "We'll find him. He'll be fine. Maybe he wasn't even home." Except, Damon knew that Jeremy had been home. He had spoken to him, only moments before he saw Katherine. That conversation seemed a lifetime away.

"Damon," the man from the council asked tentatively, from the doorway. Damon had been told that the sheriff was otherwise occupied and had to make do with this plonker. He knew he was on the council but he had never even bothered to learn his name. "We'll take the body, if you don't mind," he whispered.

"Please . . . and thank you," he said, playing the distraught helper to perfection. He pretended to take a deep breath to compose himself, "Any idea what may have done this?"

"I suppose you saw them? The bite marks on the neck? I don't know how it's still possible but . . . it must have been a," his voice dropped, "_Vampire_."

"We will have to discuss this later. Make sure no one finds out about this."

"Of course," the man mumbled, leaving them in peace.

As soon as Damon heard the click of the front door, he turned to Jenna. "Please come and stay with us tonight. I don't think it would be right for you or Elena to stay here tonight."

Jenna just shivered at the thought and nodded, squeezing his hand gratefully.

"Would you like to collect up some things?" he asked gently, surprising even himself, "Then we can go."

She nodded but didn't move. After a few moments he suggested, "How about you just come with us. I'm sure we will find all the necessary things at our place."

She nodded with more enthusiasm at this, squeezing his hand again.

~0~0~0~

"So you're Katherine," he said again, poking the fire with a stick.

"I am," she replied, giggling again.

"And you'll show me the ropes?"

"I will. Haven't I already helped you?"

"I guess you have," he replied with a smirk.

"All those pesky negative emotions," Katherine said, waving her hand as if to shoo away a fly, "Who needs them spoiling an eternity of fun? I can show you fun, Jer." She squeezed his arm, looking at him with imploring eyes, so like his sisters.

He felt inside. There was no pain, no emptiness, no sorrow, no guilt, no shame. He frowned. _What can I feel?_ he wondered, quickly asking the question out loud.

"Anything you want, Jer. You just get to pick. There are only three things you can't turn off. The most basic types of anger, fear and hunger. They are your survival basics. Don't worry about them. Believe me when I say, even those can be controlled. You can overshadow them with the joy of immortality. You can do anything now. You can be anyone you want to be. Do you want me to show you how to be the best you can be, Jer? I can show you all the fun you so deserve to have."

He looked at her outstretched hand for a moment and then quickly interlaced his fingers with hers.

~0~0~0~

Damon was sitting on the couch, drinking. He was determined to get blind drunk and he wasn't even half way there yet. Regardless of the fact that the buzz barely lasted more than a few hours, he wanted to escape for a while.

Jenna had been deposited in a guest room as soon as they arrived and Stefan had taken Elena to his room. Everyone but him was probably asleep. All he could do now was wait. _And drink_, he thought, pouring himself another glass.

Yet another glass into his drinking, he heard the soft padding of footsteps. They came down the stairs, approaching the living room. He placed his glass on the coffee table and turned towards her.

"Hi," she mumbled. She looked like hell. He told her so.

She chuckled. "Always with the flattery, Damon."

"It was you, Miss Elena, that reprimanded such behaviour on my part."

"Whatever," she said, flopping down next to him, ignoring his strangely formal reply.

They talked for a while. As they spoke, she began to look better. Her eyes were brighter, and the odd smile flickered over her features.

They eventually lapsed into silence and he struggled, unsuccessfully, to find a way to keep her distracted.

He was about to ask her if she wanted a drink when she spoke instead.

"Thank you," she told him simply.

He frowned, momentarily confused.

"For taking me with you," she clarified.

_Ah_, he thought.

"Don't thank me," he said, smirking in an attempt to keep the mood light, "It was purely selfish."

"How so?" she asked, smiling slightly at his attitude.

"Well, I do so love your company. You would have deprived me of it, had I kept you and they died." He started off playful but his tone quickly grew sombre. He looked into her eyes, unable to tell what she was feeling. He wanted to slap himself for being so blunt. So much for keeping her mind off tonight's events.

"So that's it?" she asked not even focusing on her words. She simply preferred to talk, over being left alone in a silence loaded with all her fears.

"No," he said, surprising her. He looked into her eyes and cupped her face in his hands. When he spoke next, his voice was full of sincerity, "It wasn't about you being unable to forgive me (or Stefan). Silly as you are, you would never have forgive _yourself_. I know enough of guilt and shame, Elena. I know I do _not _want you to feel that kind of pain."

She shivered. Her face was so close to his that he felt the air escape from between her lips.

They were slightly parted and his eyes focused on them for an instance, before flicking back up to her eyes. He could have sworn she leaned in slightly but he had already pulled away.

"You should sleep," he informed her, padding the couch. She began to lay down and he got up to give her room. She grabbed his hand before he could leave. "Don't go," she pleaded, "I don't want to be alone tonight."

He was instantly torn. Part of him, told him to send her to Stefan. He ignored it. Instead, he found himself sitting on the couch with her head in his lap. He was unable to resist a half hearted, "While you're down there . . ." and was rewarded with a sleepy snort from Elena.

He stroked her hair absently as her breathing steadied and she fell asleep.

~0~0~0~

Elena awoke with the sun already high in the sky, feeling more rested than she would have thought possible. At first, she thought it was the light that had woken her but then she registered the hissed conversation above her. She remembered how she had come down from Stefan's room, falling asleep next to Damon. Stefan wasn't exactly the jealous type . . . much. This didn't look too good. She shot up at that realization.

The two brothers stared at her and she looked right back. Damon was still on the couch and Stefan had taken a seat on the coffee table. Deciding to play it cool, she asked, "What are you two talking about?"

Not missing a beat, Damon answered, "Stefan here, is trying to prove that I'm guilty. Of what, I don't know."

"I'm not trying to prove you guilty Damon. I would just like some answers." Stefan was exasperated but trying hard not to show it.

"Answers to what?" Elena asked, and, before they could answer, another thought struck her, "How is Jenna? Have you heard anything about Jeremy?"

"Jenna is still asleep," Stefan reassured her, "I've been out, looking for Jeremy." He took her hand in his. "I haven't found anything, yet. You shouldn't worry. Jeremy will be fine. We will find him."

"Katherine isn't the patient type," Damon remarked, "She'll act soon enough."

"By which he means," Stefan interjected angrily, "She will let us know how to get him back safely."

Damon ignored his brother and turned to Elena. "Are you hungry?"

She nodded, registering the empty hole in her stomach. She hadn't eaten since the festival.

"Great," he said jumping up with apparent glee, "We can have something delivered from that breakfast parlour – Sunny Side Up."

"I don't think they deliver," Elena told him, remembering the summer when Bonnie had worked there. Bonnie had been disappointed at the time, that she couldn't do deliveries and use her newly acquired drivers licence.

"They do if you tip well," Damon told her confidently, proceeding to search for the number in the phone book.

Stefan and her sat in a somewhat awkward silence as Damon successfully bribed the restaurant into a delivery run.

As soon as Damon sat down, Elena asked about the questions Stefan wanted answered.

Stefan gave her a look she couldn't interpret but said nothing, focusing on Damon instead. "I asked how he knew Katherine was at your house. How _did _you know, Damon?"

He coughed uncomfortably, remembering the conversation with Jeremy, the heartfelt thank you that was meant for Elena and the kiss.

"I went to talk to her brother," he said, brushing it off as if it was nothing.

"What?" they asked simultaneously. He rose from the couch, moving towards the bar.

He could have had fun telling Stefan all forms of crazy stories. However, he couldn't remember lying to Elena (not that this meant much) but he didn't want to start, or continue, now.

"I saw Anna die in that cellar. Jonathan staked her before the fire could finish her off. I thought Jeremy might want to know. I figured he ought to. Oh yeah, and I gave him the option to forget."

Elena gasped. Damon wasn't sure at what part.

Stefan glared daggers at him.

"What did he say?" Elena asked breathlessly.

"He–" Damon began but was interrupted by a shout from outside.

"Come outside and ask me yourself, sis!"

* * *

**A/N:** There you have it. Another chapter complete. Please let me know what you think. If you have anything you want to say, criticism, input, anything you want to see happening, any suggestions, please leave a review. They make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

**A/N:** This chapter is so short it barely even qualifies. Sorry about that. I've had mid-term exams just now and a few projects still due in. I just wanted to give you guys a little bit since my updating may continue to take a while. I'd love to hear your opinion on what's happened and what you think should happen next.

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Elena ran towards the door but was met with Damon's hard frame blocking the door. She staggered back a few feet.

"Elena, wait," he told her firmly, seeing the fight in her eyes.

"Damon, move," she said, imitating his tone. Damon glanced at Stefan standing right behind her.

"Elena," he said, meeting her strong gaze head on, "Don't invite him in."

Her look turned momentarily confused and then ice-cold.

"You think she turned him?" she asked in a deadly whisper.

"Elena–" Stefan began but was cut off by Damon's blunt, "Yes."

"How can you be so sure?" she snapped, unwilling to believe his words.

Her death glare pierced into him but he refused to back down. "I can't hear a heartbeat. Ask Stefan if you don't believe me."

She turned quickly, fixing her gaze on his brother, "Well?"

"I'm sorry Elena," Stefan said, unable to undo Damon's words.

"Not as sorry she'll be," Elena muttered, sudden blood-lust running through her veins.

~0~0~0~

Jeremy was standing outside getting rather annoyed. She didn't even have the decency to come outside. He could hear the conversation clearly through the door and marvelled at the clarity of the sounds momentarily. Until the anger took over, that is. Here she went again, making judgements without him, assuming what he did was wrong.

He let his voice break as if he was about to cry, "_Elena!_" He smirked. That certainly sounded like he was in pain. He'd show her.

~0~0~0~

She heard the outcry and her blood-lust instantly dissolved back into it's origin – a desire to protect her baby brother. She threw herself against Damon in an attempt to pass. All she succeeded in doing was winding him. The fact that he didn't actually need air, made this rather redundant and had no effect whatsoever on his stance.

"Fine," Damon said, getting mad now, "If you want to run to your death, here you go." With that, he yanked open the front door, revealing Jeremy.

"Jer!" she called, stepping towards him but was held back by a desperate Stefan.

"Elena," Jeremy said sweetly, stepping towards her. Instantly, she stopped struggling against Stefan, who let her go. She knew something was wrong. The smirk on her brothers face was all wrong. The swagger in his step, the false tone, all wrong.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, barely audible, unable to deny the truth from herself.

"What ever do you mean? What, out of the hundreds of things you've done, are you sorry for, huh?"

"Everything," she told him. The raw emotion made both Salvatore brothers cringe but Jeremy was unaffected.

"So you're sorry for being in love with Vicky's murderers? Sorry for erasing my memory? Sorry for leaving me with an empty pain inside that I couldn't place? Sorry for giving Isobel the device that got Anna killed?"

She took a shaky breath."I'm sorry for being unable to protect you, yes." Her voice shook but she went on, "And I am s- sorry that she turned you. I will kill Katherine for this, I promise."

Jeremy bared his fangs, hissing at her in furry. "There you go again!" he shouted, "Making your judgement. For your information, I _chose_ this! _I_ took Anna's blood and about a dozen sleeping pills._ I chose this!_ Don't you dare threaten Katherine! You don't even know her!"

Elena was shocked into silence. "Jer–" she began but he was gone. She closed her eyes in desperation and suddenly she felt Damon's grip, painfully strong. Her eyes shot open.

"Well, well, well. What have we here?" a voice, so like her own, chippered.

"Katherine," Stefan gasped while Damon's face remained impassive. Had it not been for the way he pressed Elena to himself protectively, with an arm around her middle, she would have thought him entirely indifferent.

Elena spoke, "I will kill you for this." She didn't even bother to raise her voice, knowing the vampire would have no trouble hearing her.

"Oh, come off it Elena. You're blaming me?" She giggled, grating Elena's nerves. Then she pouted in a very child-like fashion. "Whatever for?" she whined.

"You killed John," she told her, "You took my brother!" Thinking of Jeremy infuriated her.

"I guess I did, though I can't take the credit for that last one," she told Elena, yet another giggle escaping from her, "You turned him against yourself all on your very own. I'm just helping the little fledgling out a bit."

"That's not true," Elena hissed, venom in her tone, "Just stay away–"

"What do you want from him, Katherine?" Damon broke in, cutting her off.

"Why Damon," she replied, "I just want to have some fun." She gigged, shaking her head and making the curls bounce around her face. "Now I really must be going. I would return your welcome home kiss, but you seem rather busy."

With that, she was gone.

Elena turned around in Damon's hold, standing only inches from him. She pushed herself away from his chest, betrayal written clearly in her face.

"What. Did. She. Mean. By. That?" Elena ground out. She had finally begun to trust Damon. She really had believed that he'd changed. Tears were brimming in her eyes and she felt cheated and betrayed. She didn't want to think about the tight feeling in her chest or what it meant.

"Elena, I–" Damon began, a worried tone in his voice. He was cut off.

"You know what?" she asked him scathingly, not caring what he had to say in that moment, "Why am I even surprised?" With that, she stalked off.

* * *

**A/N**: Review please, I absolutely love getting them.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

**A/N:** Hi guys. Sorry this took so long. Thank you so much for your reviews. You're my stars. I hope you enjoy the chapter. (It jumps rapidly between Elena and Damon. I hope it's not too confusing.)

* * *

Elena cried.

She sat on the bathroom rug, curled into a ball, her head on her knees.

Body shacking with suppressed sobs, she pressed herself into the tiled wall. She had been chewing her bottom lip, small gasps occasionally escaping her. Eventually she had lost the will to hold everything in and just cried openly.

She knew Stefan was outside the door. He occasionally called comforting things, begging her to let him in.

She didn't want to.

She couldn't put her finger on why she was feeling this way. It wasn't that she lacked reasons of course . . . her life was falling apart. Her parents were dead, her best friend hated Damon and Stefan, Jeremy was undead, her undead biological mother hated her, her biological father was dead, Jenna was shell-shocked . . .

She cried over all that and more, crying until she was cried out.

Stefan had stopped reasoning with her at some point but she knew he hadn't left. He was just that type of guy.

Damon hadn't shown up once. The thought only made her cry harder and she decided to spend a few more moments wallowing in self-pity.

~0~0~0~

Damon sat in the living room again, glass in hand. Stefan had told him to stay the hell away and, for once, he had listened. The heart wrenching sobs, which his over-sensitive hearing allowed him to witness as if he were right next to her, tore at his insides.

He gulped down another swig of the alcohol, letting it burn it's way down his throat.

A small voice in his mind told him to explain what Katherine had said but he wasn't one for putting himself on the chopping block. He eventually squashed the voice down, finding it uncharacteristically hard to do.

~0~0~0~

It was the basic need for food that drove Elena out of the bathroom. The order Damon had placed at Sunny Side Up had, to the best of her knowledge, never arrived. She was starving.

She picked herself up off of the bathroom floor and opened the door. Stefan was instantly at her side, engulfing her in a hug.

"Are you all right?" he mumbled into her hair, his voice laced with worry.

"I'm fine," she replied, drawing away from him. She ran her hand through her hair. "I need to get some food."

"Of course. I'll get you something."

~0~0~0~

_So she's out_, Damon thought. He was still sitting on the couch but the buzz he had successfully achieved had come and gone in the time Elena was in the bathroom. The sobs had ceased some hours before and he hadn't felt the need to keep drinking.

He was pleasantly numb now. He had turned of all emotion for the moment. Fine-tuning the inbuilt emotional switch seemed to be impossible as of late. He was either on or off. This new development highly irritated him – when he wasn't turned off that is.

~0~0~0~

She saw the back of his head. His stupid head. He was sitting in the living room where she had found him so many times before. She wanted to . . . She wasn't sure what she wanted to do.

"Are you going to come over here or do you intend to just stand there?" he asked, sound completely disinterested in her answer.

Anger flared up in her. God forbid he should say sorry or ask how she was. God forbid he'd bother to explain.

He looked up at her as she came around the sofa and his expression was calm or, more accurately, blank. Her face was initially furious but when she saw the apathy in his eyes, she could feel tears pricking in her own.

Almost instantly his expression changed and he looked like someone had hit him in the gut with a baseball bat. He managed to compose himself by putting on a straight face but the indifference in his eyes had entirely disappeared. She frowned in confusion.

~0~0~0~

The tears brimmed in her eyes. Instantly any emotion Damon could say he'd ever felt, or even heard of, slammed into him at full speed. It was as if his entire being fought a battle against his most basic vampiric right – the control over his emotions.

He cared. He cared for her and nothing would ever let him change that. He struggled but eventually managed to compose his expression. Softening it considerably, he looked into her eyes.

"Elena . . ." he began, trailing off when Stefan entered the room holding a can of corn in one hand and a can of beans in the other.

"This is all we have," Stefan declared, frowning down at the cans and then holding them up for Elena to see, "It appears that Zach wasn't too big on canned goods."

"That's what you're going to feed her?" Damon asked his brother in disbelief.

"It's fine really . . ." Elena began but trailed off when she realized that both brothers were ignoring her.

"It doesn't look like I have a choice. Apparently your breakfast diner doesn't deliver after all," Stefan snapped at him.

"Huh," Damon replied, returning his voice to its casual tone, "I'd forgotten. Wonder what's holding them up."

~0~0~0~

"Why can't we go back to finish snacking on that delivery guy?" Jeremy asked in light irritation. He hadn't killed anyone just yet and he wasn't really prepared to start. He did want to eat however.

"A gentleman never goes back for seconds," Katherine preached while walking ahead of him through the woods.

"And why not?" he shot back, feeling petulant.

"Because it's just bad manners, that's why," Katherine tutted. She was putout. Ever since the encounter with her boys and Elena, Jeremy had been in a foul mood. "Control your emotions," she told him more harshly than she had spoken to him before.

"You can't tell me what to do," he told her, brushing his long hair out of his face. She turned on him quickly, glaring.

"Yes, I do believe I can," she told him firmly, gripping his upper arm tightly.

"O– okay," Jeremy stuttered, fear suddenly clouding his mind.

"Good," she breathed out, "Now, you need to get those unnecessary feelings shut up nice and tight. Remember what I showed you."

He listened to her instructions, focusing on the calm, pushing out what he didn't wish to feel, trying to return to the way he had felt before seeking out _Elena_. He growled her name, anger seeping back in.

"Forget about _her_. You don't need that. Focus on me." Her voice was commanding and left no room for argument.

"Don't . . ." he began to mutter while simultaneously complying with her wishes. When he focused on her eyes, he easily found his concentration and was able suppress the feelings inside.

* * *

**A/N:** Hey, I know this chapter is really short as well. Sorry about that. I would love your opinion. Thanks for reading. You guys rock :)


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

**A/N:** My muse seems to have abandoned me at the moment and I really had to bite my way through this chapter. I hope you like it anyway. Sorry it took me so incredibly long to update.

* * *

"I'm sure she'll get back to you soon. Why is it so important, anyway?" the girl in front of him asked.

Alaric Saltzman was not a man to admit his deep inner feelings easily. It came with being ditched by a wife who wanted to die and become a bloodthirsty animal over spending a human life with you.

What he wanted now was for Jenna to call him back. He was happy to admit that. He wanted a response to his repeated phone calls. However, that was all he was going to say. He was not willing to discuss _why_ he wanted a response so badly. He was certainly not going to do so here nor with Jenna's niece of all people.

"Just ask her to give me call, would you Elena?" he asked. He let out a slightly exasperated sigh.

_Is it too much to ask to get an explanation after a woman stands you up?_ he wondered.

"Sure thing, Mr. Saltzman," she replied, tossing her curls over her shoulder.

Riiiiiiiiing!

"Oh, sorry, I have to get to class now." She waved her hand, giggling as she walked away, calling back a quick good bye.

~0~0~0~

Two days later, Elena stood in Stefan's room, rubbing her eyes. She hadn't slept well lately and was watching the light slowly fade away into night, glad that she could return to bed soon.

It had been very quite. She had heard nothing from any of her friends, family or enemy.

The absence of both Bonnie and Caroline confused her but she was almost glad to be left alone at the moment. She was going back tomorrow anyway and she had bigger things to deal with. Things such as Jenna and the worry she felt for her. Her aunt was unwilling to come out of her room and she wished she could make her pain go away. She had begged Damon to erase her memory but he reminded her that the story they had given the police had to check out. Then, having placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, he had also reminded her of the fiasco with Jeremy.

He had done that a lot lately . . . _touching her_ that is, not reminding her of Jeremy. He did it when he brushed past her in the hallway, when he handed her a plate, when she had something caught in her hair . . . she sighed in exasperation, running her hand through the afore mentioned hair. She recrossed her arms, continuing to stare out into the setting darkness.

"What's with the doom and gloom?" Damon's voice questioned behind her.

She jumped slightly but her voice remained nonchalant. "Oh, it's nothing," she said, turning towards him, away from the open window.

"All right. Where's the King of all Gloom then?" he asked.

"_Stefan_'s, out hunting," she told him.

"Lucky me," he replied in a deeper tone – a tone, which did funny things to her insides.

She cleared her throat, trying to dislodge the sudden lump in her throat. Ignoring his chuckle, she asked, "Shouldn't you be out hunting too?"

"I have some blood bags left in the freezer," he answered, stepping closer to her.

"I thought you hated that stuff."

"Despise it," he replied with another step in her direction.

She moved back, her legs bumping against the window frame.

"Then why don't you find something tastier?" She couldn't believe she was encouraging him to hunt but she needed him to step away to be able to think clearly.

"You offering yourself?" he asked, sounding oddly sensual to her ears.

Her head wasn't working properly. "If you want," she breathed out.

"You're still wearing Vervane, right?" His expression changed suddenly and he sounded genuinely concerned. It broke whatever had been between them.

"Yes," she told him, slowly loosing the breathy voice.

"Then don't offer things you won't follow through with!" he snapped. He sounded angry. Or was it hurt? Did she detect hurt in his voice?

Great, now she was angry with him and she didn't even know why. Choosing the first reason that came to mind, she yelled at him, "Well, I wasn't really going to let you eat me!"

He raised his hands in mock surrender, backing out of the room. "Not what I meant."

She hated that infuriating smirk on his face. She really did.

~0~0~0~

Stefan arrived back a few hours later, wearing a scowl and holding a newspaper.

"Animal attacks," he said, "Guess we know why we never got that delivery."

"What do you mean?" Elena asked confused, leaning forward to pick up the paper he had dropped on the coffee table.

The headline read ANIMAL ATTACKS CONTINUE and underneath it _Downside for Sunny Side Up_. She dropped it, covering her mouth with her hands.

"What's going on?" Damon asked, strolling lazily into the living room.

They pointed wordlessly at the paper and his expression changed to one of understanding and annoyance. "Great, now I'll never get them to deliver again."

Elena looked at him a bit shocked.

"Oh don't look at me like that. I know. It's all very tragic. Ahh." He waved his hands in the air in mock-fear.

"Damon–" Stefan began.

"Oh, come on. It's not like we didn't expect this."

"I didn't," Elena whispered quietly before Stefan could retaliate.

Their expressions softened instantly and they both looked at her. She seemed genuinely shocked at the news and they remembered how innocent she really was.

"Is this going to happen again?" Elena asked, her voice still as vulnerable and quiet as before.

"Elena," Stefan tried too keep his voice steady and calming, "Katherine is unlike any Vampire you've met . . . Think of Damon at his worst–"

"Hey," Damon admonished.

"–that you've seen–"

"Hey!"

"–and quadruple it."

"Better. See, I'm nothing but innocent."

"You couldn't be innocent if you tried, Damon," Stefan told him, unable to ignore that last comment.

"No, you're right," Damon agreed, "Then I'd be as dull as you."

Elena sucked in a breath, cutting through their bickering. "How is that even possible?" she asked, running her hand through her hair in a nervous gesture.

Stefan let out a sigh but answered her, "She has trained herself to control her emotions, completely. We – vampires – can turn our emotions on and off with a mental switch. The degree of control varies but Katherine has mastered it. I have never met another vampire quite as skilled as her . . . and her protégées."

Elena blinked at him, letting the words sink in. "So she feels nothing?"

"That would be too simple," Stefan continued, "She feels only the good."

"The good and three other things," Damon elaborated, "Fear, not that I've ever seen her scared; anger, though usually she is more petulant than anything else; and hunger, lot's of it. She has no choice about those, they are survival basics that no vampire can control."

"So what do _you_ feel?' Elena asked, catching him off guard.

"Everything lately," he blurted and then smoothed past it as best he could, "But that's irrelevant. Maybe your brothers emotions are what you should focus on instead." This effectively distracted Elena but Stefan gave him a hard, searching look, which he returned with a mocking one.

"What do you mean?" she asked, fear lacing her voice.

"He's only a fledgling and, knowing Katherine, she hasn't bothered to explain what that means."

"Well, what does it mean?" she prompted.

Stefan took her hands in his, looking her in the eye. "Do you remember how Vicky acted? She was completely unable to hold herself together, forced to follow the main emotions that dominated her human life."

"Yes . . . but what does it mean for Jeremy?" She sounded stupid to her own ears but her brain just didn't want to work faster.

"The way he showed up here proves that his fledgling emotions have likely attached to your fight with him. It means that you are constantly on his mind now."

Damon decided to interject at this point, "Probably not _all_ the time. Katherine makes for a wonderful distraction from what she calls 'unnecessary' emotions."

"Yes. Thank you," Stefan growled, continuing with what he wanted to make sure Elena understood, "What's important is that he is dangerous. He is dangerous to _you_. Until we solve this, you can't leave the house. Do you understand that Elena?"

She was quite for a long moment and the most intelligent sentence her brain managed to form was, "What about school?"

Damon chuckled but Stefan looked at her seriously. His next words were worried. "Of course that is a problem. However, I won't let you go Elena. It would endanger you as well as anyone near you. It's too dangerous."

"Yeah, that's fine Stefan," she soothed, despite her annoyance at his assuming that he could make her stay home, "I get it. But are you sure? It's been quiet for days?"

Damon replied for his brother, "I'm sure. Katherine likes to play and this is far too good an opportunity to pass up on. Even if we are wrong about him, we aren't wrong about her."

"Then what are we going to do?" she said, sounding desperate, "I can't hide out here forever."

~0~0~0~

Elena set up in bed, ripped from her nightmare by loud banging on the front door and a car that was driving up to the house.

"What's going on?" she mumbled sleepily, rubbing her eyes. Slightly shaken, she hopped out of bed, pushing the dream to the back of her mind. She padded to the door in bare feet. Damon came into the hallway just as she did and stopped momentarily. He took in her short shorts and up-riding tank top. The cool morning air was hardening her nipples and she squirmed under his suddenly intense gaze. She bit into her lower lip, running a hand through her still miraculously perfect hair. His eyes focused on her lips and it took a loud crash from downstairs to break the sudden electricity between them.

"Bonnie!" Stefan's surprised cry sounded from downstairs.

They looked to the source of the noise and then back to each other.

"Bonnie?" she mouthed, her expression changing to one of confusion.

Elena ran down the stairs and Damon simply jumped over the banister, hitting the ground lightly. They arrived at the front door shortly after one another, seeing it hanging off its hinges. Just inside the house stood a very worried looking Stefan who was arguing with an enraged looking Bonnie.

"How can you defend him? I warned you!" Bonnie shouted, waving her arms in the air, "You are the only two vampires left! Are you saying _you_ did it?"

"Did what? What are you talking about?" Stefan yelled back.

"What's going on?" Damon asked.

The two turned towards him simultaneously and Bonnie let out what sounded like a growl. "You!" she exclaimed.

Damon abruptly dropped to his knees.

* * *

**A/N:** I've had more time to write lately so this chapter is longer than the last few. Yay! :)


	6. Chapter 6

_**Chapter Six**_

**A/N:** I know this update has taken forever and I'm sorry. I have so much other stuff to do and my muse seems to enjoy frequent holidays and . . . yeah, sorry. Sadly I can't promise that I'll update any faster in future. Thank you for everyone who reads, faves and reviews this story. You are awesome and I hope you'll bear with me in the future. Enough from me. On with the story . . .

* * *

Damon was on his knees, clutching at his head. It took everything he had not to scream out in agony. This was becoming a far too frequent occurrence for his liking.

"No!" Elena screamed, "What are you doing? Don't hurt him!"

"What?" she growled, breathing heavily, "I told you what he did!" She was advancing on him and Elena moved in front of him.

"What are you taking about?" she shouted, dropping to her knees to hold Damon's head in her arms. She saw the pain in his eyes and turned her head back to yell at Bonnie, "Let him go!"  
Bonnie faltered in her step for a moment. "I can't Elena. He killed Toby." She sounded apologetic but Elena didn't care.

"I don't care what you say! He hasn't done anything! Stop hurting him! _Please_," she begged, her voice becoming weak with emotion on the last word.

Damon's head slumped forward slightly and she turned back quickly, still holding his head in her hands.

"Ow," Damon muttered in a flat tone, when the piercing pain stopped.

"Ahem, hi," an uncertain voice said from the doorway.

They all turned their heads towards the intruder. All except Damon that is, who was still recovering.

"Mr Saltzman?" Bonnie asked bewildered.

"What's going on?" Stefan questioned all of them.

"That's what I'd like to know," Alaric replied.

"How about we all discuss this in the living room," Stefan suggested, sweeping an inviting arm in that general direction.

Everyone nodded, too confused to object, and once Damon picked himself off of the floor, they all started to move.

They entered the living room and everyone slowly gathered around the coffee table, though Damon made a quick stop at the liquor cabinet first. He looked at Elena who was watching him, eyes filled with concern. He put his drink on the table and quickly took off his jacket. He threw it at her and she put it on gratefully, realizing how little she was wearing. Satisfied, he seated himself between Stefan and Alaric, as far away from Bonnie as he could get. Elena looked at her friend, sitting next to her on the couch, both worry and anger mingling on her face.

"What's going on Bonnie?" she inquired, forcing her friend to take her slitted eyes off Damon.

"I already told you," her friend huffed, "I read about the _animal attack_ on Toby. I worked with him, Elena. He was a good guy. I warned Stefan," she looked at him and then moved her gaze to Damon, "That I would kill him myself if any more innocent people got hurt."

"Well, I didn't do it," Damon defended himself instantly, "Trust me."

"Trust you?" She laughed, sounding not in the least bit cheerful, "Why should I?"

"Because I can vouch for him," Elena told her but was cut off before she could go on.

"It was in the middle of the night Elena, you can't known where he was."

She blushed slightly but continued, "I was with him. He couldn't have done it."

"_Okay!_" Bonnie said, giving her friend a searching look, "then why didn't you tell me that in school? I asked you–"

"I haven't been in school in days," Elena interrupted.

"Yes you have. I saw you just this morning," Bonnie told her slightly exasperated.

"No, you didn't!" Elena said with more force than she had intended.

"Katherine," both Salvatore brothers said at the same time.

~0~0~0~

Bonnie had left a few hours earlier after they had established that a) Damon had not viciously mauled the delivery guy and b) Katherine had effectively taken up position as Elena at school, fooling absolutely everybody – That stung pretty bad. Alaric was with Jenna at the moment and she was glad that somebody had accepted the role of looking after her aunt. He turned out to be a blessing disguised as a history teacher.

Elena rolled the events back and forth and back and forth in her mind. There was so much she had to consider but only one thing was at the forefront of her mind. So much so that she went to seek out Damon. With Bonnie's words, '_Trust you? Why should I?_', rang in her ears. She knew they had been directed at Damon but she felt as if they were for her too. _Could she trust herself any more? Could she trust him?_ She knocked on his bedroom door. She needed answers.

Opening the door, she found him sitting at the desk, reading a book. At the sight of her, he uncrossed his legs, set down his book and looked at her expectantly.

"Damon . . . can I talk to you?" she asked uncertainly, fidgeting with the hem of her top.

"Sure," he replied, giving her a steady look.

"Listen," she began as she moved towards him, blurting out the first words that came to her mind, "I'm really sorry 'bout that time you tried to get Katherine out of the tomb." Her words came out mumbled but he caught them clearly enough. She figured trust was a two way street and she had violated his trust in her, after all. Maybe an apology should come first? She didn't know. It was too late to consider it now.

He moved towards her, so quickly that he was just a blur, coming to a stop right in front of her.

"You should be," he told her. A look of hurt crossed her features and he softened his expression ever so slightly. If it was possible, he came even closer, brushing the hair away from her face.

"I'd be willing to forgive you," he said, a condition ringing behind his words. Despite this, she leaned into his touch, her eyes fluttering closed for just a moment. "Forgive me if I ever lied to you?" he asked and she looked at him again.

"I'd be willing to forgive you," she said, echoing his earlier words, "If you tell me what Katherine was talking about?"

"Whatever do you mean?" he asked, feigning innocence.

"You know . . ." she said trailing off, embarrassed to admit how much she wanted to know and unable to explain why.

He knew what she meant despite her less than helpful explanation and he looked deeply into her eyes. Then, cupping her face with his hands, he spoke. His words were laced with sincerity. "I saw Katherine when I went to your house," he began, "To thank you for saving my life, to thank you for deciding that I was worth saving and to thank you for helping me feel again . . . When I was close to her I– Damnit Elena, I wanted it to be you. I really had hope. I've never hoped to be rejected before but I knew you would if I . . ." He trailed off. There had been a minimal change in her expression at his last words. His face was only inches from hers. That look in her eyes had given him pause. A questioning, almost-half smile ghosted over his features.

"_Would _you reject me if I did this?" he murmured, moving to within a hair's breadth from her.

~0~0~0~

"What's the point in this?" Jeremy asked again. "I hated that place when I was alive. I didn't want to spend my undead life there as well."

"A gentlemen should be properly educated," Katherine preached as they continued to move through the forest.

"Good thing I don't want to be a gentleman then," Jeremy replied, rolling his eyes.

She stopped and looked at him. "Don't you want to make some girl happy?" she asked, looking at him with big eyes.

"I've had enough of girls for a lifetime," Jeremy told her. "I want to go see Elena," he added as an afterthought.

"Why?" Katherine said trying, and somewhat failing, to keep the whine out of her voice.

"I don't know," he muttered, scratching his head, "I just think . . . she's my sister and . . . I'm mad at her. I love her. No! I hate her . . . I think. I should?"

She sighed. _Fledglings! Why did she bother?_

"Don't worry about her," she told him firmly, "She doesn't understand you." He looked like a wounded puppy then and she took his hand in hers. "But I understand you, Jer, and I'm here for you." She waited a moment and then gave him a sugary smile. "It's not long now, remember? Can you wait until then?"

He thought about it and then nodded slowly. Having apparently solved that problem for the moment, his mind moved to the next pressing subject at hand. "When can we go eat?" he asked.

~0~0~0~

His lips were so close to hers, she could almost taste them.

"I," she breathed out, barely suppressing a moan at the hand that was ghosting it's way to the small of her back. _Why was she here again?_ When he began to trace small circles over her skin, where her top had ridden up, all thought left her.

"Yes," he said, urging her to go on and this time she did moan.

That sound seemed to do something in her brain and she blurted, "Stefan!" _Oh god, oh god, oh god! What was she doing? Stefan!_ She ran both her hands through her hair, taking a step backwards. She wanted the earth to open up and swallow her in that moment – inside a part of her was screaming because she had forgotten about Stefan and another part, if she was brutally honest with herself, because she had remembered him at such an inopportune moment.

She took a shuddering breath, still feeling the ghost of Damon's fingers hot on her skin.

He turned away from her with a frustrated look.

"There's a mood kill," he drawled, picking up his book carefully before turning to her again. He sat down, quickly crossing his legs.

She just stood there, unable to form much in the way of coherent thought.

"Yeah, I should probably . . ." she began, gesturing in the direction of the door behind her.

He just looked at her, seemingly ignoring her words, though he did shift his legs uncomfortably. When she continued to stand there he made a mocking gesture towards the door.

"Yeah," she mumbled again, looking down before leaving the room.

* * *

**A/N:** Please leave a review and tell me how I did, especially on that last bit :)


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